


Painting Our Colours

by jenjen92



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-16
Updated: 2015-12-16
Packaged: 2018-05-07 04:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5442593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jenjen92/pseuds/jenjen92
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An AU fiction where Haru never learnt how to swim. Instead he is a painter, painting beautiful pictures of water that could not help but catch Rin's eye. Since a chance meeting together at one of Haru's exhibitions, Rin began to find more than just his paintings beautiful.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Painting Our Colours

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jellyfishline](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jellyfishline/gifts).



> Here is my submission for the HaruRinHaru Christmas Exchange 2015!  
> jellyfishline, I really hope you like it! It was actually my first time writing a Free! fanfiction, so now with more experience there is lots I would change, but I hope you can enjoy it regardless :)

 

The colours in the painting that was in front of Rin mesmerised him to the point where he could not possibly avert his eyes. Swirling blues and greens in countless shades depicted the depths of a pool in ways that other works could not. Although most would consider the piece abstract, it also held an extraordinary realism. One that a swimmer such as Rin could recognise.  _Typical of Nanase Haruka’s paintings_ Rin thought, giving the painting another long look before leaving the gallery and breaking into a jog. He needed to reach swimming practice on time.

Ever since his sister, Gou, unwillingly dragged him to accompany her to an art gallery on their day off Rin had been a fan of Nanase’s paintings.  Rin had found himself in a small room in the gallery which showcased new artist’s works. Never a fan of art in general, preferring fashion to express himself, nothing in the gallery had caught Rin’s attention, yet these water paintings simply begged for them. Every aspect of the paintings from the colour pallet to the shapes and raw emotion they held weaved its way into his heart, and he had left the gallery with several prints of the work which are now displayed in his apartment. The first of many.

Yet every time Rin stared at a print or visited the latest exhibition he could not help but wonder, exactly what sort of person was Nanase Haruka? He did not know anything about the artist except a name, date of birth and the fact that they were an artistic prodigy with a willing to keep their life private; the only information that the Wikipedia article shared on the subject. Rin didn’t even know Nanase’s gender, although from the name Haruka he guessed it was a woman. And despite not being attracted to women, he thought that she must be beautiful to create paintings such as that.

Rin had never been so wrong in his life.

For his birthday, Gou had given him a ticket to Nanase Haruka’s new exhibition. A ‘meet the artist’ exhibition. Unable to contain his excitement on the day of the exhibition he arrived as early as he could, dressed top to bottom in his best clothes and flashing his ticket to the security guards as he practically bounded inside.

Which is how Rin found himself staring deeply into the bluest eyes he had ever seen. The eyes belonged  to an equally attractive man with jet black hair who seemed to be staring straight back at him without an expression on his pale face. He was a similar age and build to himself, and he exuded an air of mystery. Rin swallowed. He was simply _beautiful._

“Your hair.”

The man spoke suddenly, his cool, deep voice sailing through the silence.

“The colour would look good with water. It’s nice.”

Rin really hoped that his cheeks did not flush the same colour as his hair as a sudden heat ran through him.

“Are you…Nanase Haruka-san?” He asked the man with a nervous twinge to his voice, averting his eyes from continuing to stare into that blue.

“Call me Haru.” The man, Haru, replied immediately. His short answers giving the impression that he was the silent type that didn’t talk very much. Which made his outburst about Rin’s hair seem even more unusual. Maybe all artists are quirky, Rin thought as he dared to edge a step closer to Haru.

“It’s an honour to meet you, Haru!” he gushed, unable to stop himself, “I am a big fan of your work. A really big one, in fact. I have fifteen prints of your artwork on my wall. I love the colours you use, and the sensation of being in water is really conveyed well.”

To his relief, Haru did not look at Rin like a crazed fan or in disgust. In fact, the man’s expression did not change at all.

“Thank you.” He said, allowing the smile to return to Rin’s face, “Most of the other people here just see the monetary value in my work, and don’t look far beyond that.”

“That sucks.” Rin said frowning, unsure what he should say, “it is the content that’s important. Not the price, right? I bet you must spend a lot of time in water to get it right.”

“I do.”

“A swimmer?” Rin grinned, flashing his pointed teeth, “I am too. I’m currently swimming for the Japanese national team. Maybe one day if you like we could ra-”

“Actually,” Haru said in his deep voice, moving his face to the side, “I can’t swim.”

“Ah…”

Embarrassment rushed over Rin as Haru no longer met his eye-line, praying that he had not ruined probably his only chance to get to know his idolised painter with his big mouth.

“I’m sorry for rushing ahead. But I could teach you, if you wanted to learn?” The words spilled out without thinking.

“I’ll pass.” Haru said without missing a beat, making Rin’s heart fall further, “but thank you for the offer. I would accept if I could.”

“Too busy painting I guess?”

“I have a heart condition, to put it simply. Swimming is impossible for me.”

“Oh…I’m sorry.”

An awkward silence fell over them both as Rin wished for the floor to swallow him. As always he just rambled on without knowing anything, probably upsetting Haru with things he would rather not think about. He thought he should probably walk away now, having already caused enough damage, and let the painter talk to some of the other visitors to the exhibition who had started to slowly file into the room.

“But maybe I could watch you swim one day.”

“Huh?” Rin blurted out, surprised. Haru still wanted to talk to him? “I mean, yeah, of course.” He rushed, “It’s not that interesting, though. I wouldn’t want to tear you away from your paintings for that, although I would love to see how you worked.”

“You can.” Haru said, with a small smile which almost made Rin’s last remaining sanity melt away. The painter reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a glossy business card with his address and phone number on it, and passed it with a casual flick to Rin’s hands.

“Is that _okay?_ ” Rin asked, staring at the card that was shaking in his hand in awe.

“Of course.” Haru said plainly, “just call in advance so that I am ready for you.”

“Do you give one of these out to all of your fans?” Rin teased, tucking the card away in his back pocket.

“No, only you.” The sincerity in Haru’s voice astonished Rin, “You’re different. I can tell you really love water. And I like that.”

~

 

It took all of Rin’s self-control to not abuse Haru’s number as soon as he received it by sending a constant stream of texts to try and get to know the artist better. Yet Rin could tell that Haru was not the type of person who would appreciate that so he refrained. Even though the raven-haired man had not left his thoughts a single time since they met.  Rin wanted to know more about him. No, not more. Everything.

After a week of holding back, Rin finally sent a simple text to Haru.

_Hey! You alright?  If you are free Saturday, I would like to see your studio!_

_Rin_

As an afterthought, Rin added ‘ _the guy with the red hair’_ to the message. He was so caught up with Haru at the exhibition that he realised he forgot to say his name. How idiotic. Maybe Haru would not even remember who he was. He would have met a lot of people at the exhibition, probably given out a lot of cards despite what he said. So Rin just put his phone away with a sigh. All he could do now was wait.

Rin received a reply two days later. Frankly, by that time he had given up waiting and already allowed the disappointment of not seeing Haru again seep into his veins. So when his phone lit up with the words ‘Haru’ flashing loudly on the screen he almost dropped the phone onto his tiled kitchen floor as Rin fumbled to open the message.

_2pm. You have the address._

Short and direct, Haru texted the same way he spoke. Rin didn’t mind that at all as he couldn’t help the toothy grin that spread across his face. He had three days until Saturday. Three long days until he could stare into those deep-ocean eyes again.

Although, Rin thought as he half jogged in the direction of Haru’s studio that Saturday, perhaps staring into his eyes again might freak him out. It wasn’t normal behaviour. No matter how stunning they were. Rin frowned. He really was falling for the painter that he barely knew anything about. _He could be really horrible_. Rin muttered to himself, yet that seemed unlikely. Blunt, yes, but horrible? No. _In that case, he will probably be straight._ He let out a small laugh, that must have seemed strange to any onlookers and tried to stop his mind from overworking.

It didn’t take much longer for Rin to reach the location he was given for the studio. It was part of a complex about 6 stories high that seemed to house many studios, probably for higher profile artists as the building had a reception area. Rin gave his name to the woman on the reception desk who let him through with a raised eyebrow when she saw he was visiting.

“Nanase-san only usually has one visitor, it’s unusual. But he is expecting you, so go ahead.”

Rin gave his thanks, and got into the lift to the directed floor. Who was Haru’s usual visitor? Once again, he tried to shake those thoughts from his mind as he attempted to prepare himself for seeing the man again, straightening the black beanie on his head.

When Rin knocked on studio 004 the door swung open with startling speed. Haru stood tall in the doorway, his hair falling neatly just before his eyes. Despite being dressed only in a light blue hooded top and paint-smeared jeans, once again Rin was taken in by how effortlessly gorgeous he looked. Haru seemed to stare at Rin too for a moment before saying a short ‘hello’ and opening the door wider for him to fit through. With a small bow of his head, Rin stepped into the studio and took in the sights surrounding him.

The plain white walls were adorned with photographs and prints of various types of water, some of which did not avoid the splashes of stray paint which appeared frequently. In fact, paint seemed to litter every surface, whether in bottles a pallet or a stain. In the centre of the room was a large canvass propped on a stand with a tank of water nearby.

“Wow…is this what you are working on?” Rin asked, walking towards it with wide eyes.

“Yeah.” Said Haru, following his pace through the room.

“It looks amazing, like seriously,” he continued, trying to examine every aspect of it, “what is it based on?”

“Sumida River at dawn.”

“Well the river has never looked _this_ great!” Rin said excitedly, trying to get a visible reaction from Haru whose face had still not changed, “I don’t see any pencil lines…do you not sketch on the canvass first?”

“I only paint free.”

“It seems to be working well for you.”

“I guess.”

With the conversation dried up between the two of them, a silence slithered into air which brought upon a feeling of awkwardness. Rin was fast learning that it was hard to talk to Haru. But he was not going to give up. He could be creative too, albeit in a different way.

“So…” Rin started, again starting to pace around the room, “let’s play a game.”

“A game?” Haru asked slowly, and the swimmer could almost sense a hint of interest in his voice.

“Yeah! A getting to know you game.” He reached into his shoulder bag and pulled out a pack of playing cards which he always carried around with him. “Like strip poker, but instead of taking off an item of clothing the loser has to say a fact about themselves. You in?”

“Let’s do it.”

Rin quickly learned without Haru having to say it, that the painter was extremely competitive. Despite him admitting that he was never able to play sports or do things that required a lot of movement due to his heart condition, although he still did not seem comfortable to talk about it in detail, he clearly had a love for competition. And as a competitive swimmer, that was a trait Rin could get behind. Yet, due to his competitiveness Rin found himself losing more than he would have liked and seemed to be doing most of the talking. Although he did learn that Haru appeared to be a fan of cute mascot characters which Rin couldn’t help but let out a laugh at, and that he had a strange affinity towards mackerel. Rin also learnt that he was further falling for him. Fast. Haru was more expressive than he initially seemed when he relaxes, although not in the usual sense.

After spending time chatting together in what seemed to be a gradually warming atmosphere an alarm pierced through the room, causing Rin to cringe. Haru walked over to the alarm which seemed to belong to his mobile phone left on a nearby counter and turned it off, before picking up a paintbrush.

“It has been an hour. That is the end of my break from painting.” He said firmly, “I need to concentrate. It was nice to see you.”

That was an instruction to leave if ever Rin heard one, so he stood up from where he was sat on the gallery floor and brushed himself off, placing a small pout on his lips.

“Aww, really?” Rin said playfully, elongating his words, “I only just got here. Can’t I stay longer and watch you paint? I promise to stay quiet.”

Haru seemed to consider this to his surprise for a moment, pursing his lips in a manner that Rin found adorable.

“Not this time.”

_Not this time?_ Rin grinned. That means there was a next time.

“I get it,” He said, almost skipping towards the door, “same time next week?”

“Yeah…okay.”

Rin flashed Haru a toothy smile in return as he turned away and waved goodbye. As he reached the doorway a picture caught his eye. Instead of the paintings and prints that decorated the room it was a photograph- framed properly and stood proudly on a tall table. The photograph was of Haru, smiling in a warm way that Rin had not yet seen, and another man was smiling even wider next to him. The man had floppy brown hair and eyes that simply embodied kindness. He was cute, yes, but what caught Rin’s attention was that his arms were around Haru who just looked so happy. Rin could almost feel his heart sinking down to his knees. That must be the painter’s ‘usual visitor’. So much for worrying that he was straight.

“That’s my friend Makoto.” Haru’s said, almost making Rin jump, “we have been friends since elementary school. He visits me sometimes.”

If Rin didn’t know any better, he would think Haru was almost emphasising the word ‘friend’. Was that his way of letting his feelings known?

“He seems friendly, huh?”

“Too friendly for his own good sometimes. But you would get along. I will tell you about him next week and more.”

~

True to their word, Rin spent the following Saturday in Haru’s studio at 2pm. And the next one. It was becoming a routine that each Saturday Rin would visit the studio and they would spend an hour talking, playing games or eating savoury snacks that the red-headed male would bring with him. It was not long before Haru began to break his one hour rule and Rin would spend the afternoon watching him paint from the corner of the studio, often while reading a swimming related book. Rin loved to watch Haru paint, especially his hands. From the way those hands held the paintbrush to the way they created both strong and light lines of paint on the canvass, his eyes could follow their movements for what seemed like hours. Although a condition of Rin staying there was that he had to remain silent, to his surprise Haru actually had a tendency to start short conversations with him. This was mostly to ask opinions of his paintings, but the fact that Rin’s opinion seemed to matter to Haru made butterflies dance throughout his stomach.

 “It’s finished.”

Rin looked up from his book and peered over to where Haru was standing, proudly, next to his canvas. The shimmering of fresh paint was unmistakable.

“Oh my god, wow…” He walked over to the painting and began to admire it, resisting the urge to reach out and touch it. “It’s just…wow Haru. It’s amazing; I can’t believe I watched you paint this. God, I’d love to own this.”

“You can.” Shrugged Haru.

“…You can’t be serious. This painting is probably worth…”

“I was half joking.” Haru flashed one of his melting smiles, “I don’t care about the money, but my agent would kill me.”

“So what will you paint next?” Rin asked, picking up a paintbrush and twirling it in his hands.

“I don’t know yet.”

“Paint _me._ ” Said Rin in his deepest voice, posing dramatically in front of Haru and his paint and batting his eyelids strongly. The painter shook his head with a small laugh, his fringe flopping to each side.

“Tempting. But I only paint water.”

“Make an exception for me?”

“No.”

“It was worth a try,” Rin said pouting slightly, “Whatever you paint though will be amazing. I have no skill for anything like that.”

“Would you like to give it a go?” Haru asked seriously, removing his completed painting from the large easel and replacing it with a blank canvas.

“Really? Is that okay?”

“Sure. I have plenty of canvases.”

“Alright then, prepare to be horrified!” Rin said excitedly, running over to his bag and pulling out a hair tie. “I will just put my hair out of the way first.”

Haru seemed to watch Rin fascinated with wide eyes as he began to pull his hair back.

“Can…I do it?”

“Huh?” The words did not register properly in Rin’s mind.

“Your hair…can I do it?” Haru’s voice took on a slightly softer tone to what he was used to, and Rin felt a short spark of electricity jolt up his spine.

“Uh, yeah… if you want.”

Rin passed his hair tie to Haru, who wrapped it around his wrist, before unconsciously holding his breath as he waited. The sudden sensation of warm hands smoothing the top of his head overwhelmed his senses. Haru’s hands were gentle and skilled as he neatly pulled Rin’s hair back into a ponytail, smoothing the loose strands down with his fingers. Rin’s body involuntarily shivered at the action.

“There.”  Haru finally stated, allowing Rin to slowly exhale.

“Thanks, does it look okay?” He asked, suddenly feeling nervousness wash over him.

“You look beautiful.” Haru said simply, as he turned away from Rin to start setting up a paint pallet.

_Beautiful._ Rin was unable to tell if Haru was being sarcastic or not, but he felt that it was a genuine comment. He smiled a slightly embarrassed smile, and watched Haru mix his paints. It was not long before the dark-haired male pushed a pallet in front of him and waved Rin towards the canvas.

“Go ahead.”

Rin picked up a paintbrush slightly shakily in his hands.

“Where do I start?” He asked helplessly, staring at the blank canvas in front of him.

“Anywhere you want.”

“What should I paint?”

“Anything you want. You are free.”

“Help me?” Rin frowned.

Haru audibly sighed, before standing behind Rin, moving so that he was slightly to his right hand side.

“Choose a colour and then lift your arm up towards the canvas.” He murmured close to Rin’s ear.

Dipping his paintbrush into a Prussian blue colour and raising his arm like Haru said, Rin tried to stop his knees from going weak. The effect that Haru was having on him at this moment was indescribable.

“Okay, now let’s make a swish like this…”

Feeling a warm, firm grip on his wrist, Rin was helpless as Haru moved his arm in a circular motion, the brush drawing soft lines over the canvas.

“Good…just like that.” Haru encouraged in a low whisper, as Rin continued to allow his hands to guide his movements. Rin almost forgot to breath as the painter pressed himself closer to him. He could feel the steady beat of his heart against his back. The same heart that was causing Haru problems was also the same one that kept him alive, and Rin could not be more grateful for that fact than right now.

“Rin?”

“Yeah…?” Rin replied, his voice wavering slightly as he spoke.

“You’re crap at this.”

Before Rin had a chance to think of a comeback Haru’s hand dropped from his wrist and wrapped around his waist, swivelling him around to face the dark-haired man. He had one look into his deep, blue eyes before his face came closer, too close, as Haru captured Rin’s lips with his.

The kiss was short. As Haru pressed his lips against Rin’s he could feel their roughness, feel their inexperience with the clumsiness of the action. But Rin could feel Haru’s emotions too, his intentions towards him clear with that one small action. When Haru pulled away, he turned his head to the side, unable to make eye contact with Rin. The swimmer chuckled, placing his hand on his cheek and moving his head gently to face him with a smile. There might still be a lot that Rin did not know about Haru, but this was painting the start to their story.


End file.
